NEW DELHI: The CBI registered an FIR against Oxfam India and its office-bearers for alleged violation of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act and carried out searches at its office here, officials said on Wednesday.
The CBI registered the case on the basis of a complaint from the Union home ministry, which had suspended Oxfam India’s FCRA licence last year. The complaint alleges that Oxfam India received at least Rs 1.5 crore directly into its ‘foreign contribution utilisation’ account instead of the designated bank account between 2013 and 2016.
The complaint further claims that Oxfam India routed Rs 12.7 lakh to the Centre for Policy Research (CPR) in financial year 2019-20 in violation of FCRA rules and that the non-government organisation intended to bypass the FCRA by transferring funds to other associations or for-profit consultancy firms.
The CBI has seized several emails in this connection from Oxfam India’s office during a survey conducted last year. The complaint by MHA states that the email communications found during the survey allegedly showed that Oxfam India was planning to pressurise the Indian government for renewal of FCRA through foreign governments and institutions.
The 37-paged FIR also mentions a property worth Rs 4 crore sold by British citizen, Banwari Lal, to Oxfam India but the value in gift deed is stated as Rs 2 crore, triggering suspicions of undervaluation and evading of stamp duty.
Oxfam India has denied any wrongdoing and said that it was cooperating with the authorities. “Oxfam India has been cooperating with all government agencies since its FCRA registration wasn’t renewed in December 2021. We have filed a plea in the Delhi High Court against the decision to not renew our FCRA registration. The high court has asked the Union government to respond to our plea,” it had said in a statement earlier this month.
The home ministry alleged that Oxfam India got at least 1.5 crore directly into its ‘foreign contribution utilisation’ account instead of the designated bank account.
Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, Location Guesser and Mini Crossword. Raj Shekhar Jha is an assistant editor with The Times of India, D...
Read MoreRaj Shekhar Jha is an assistant editor with The Times of India, Delhi. He has been writing on internal security and crime for TOI since 2011.
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